Are you aware of any efforts (by USAT or others) to do molecular autopsies on these athletes who pass? I have to think that LQTS1 has already been considered as a culprit but I have not kept up on the status of the investigation into these swim related deaths. I have certainly considered genetic testing for myself if I am going to continue in this sport.

we have about as much as we can get as of this moment here. there are 1 or 2 things i haven't written yet, that i think are noteworthy and that i believe i'll take up at a later time. but for now, this is what we know. Dan Empfield aka Slowman

if you follow the links at the bottom of the page on the article on this death that's just published on the slowtwitch front page, you'll find a LOT we've written about this, including a lot on cardiac health. there is no common etiology. i have not yet heard that long QT was the proximate cause in any triathlon deaths. yes in HCM, yes on left ventricular hypertrophy, but i've still got a real question about how it is you tell, in an autopsy, pathological LVH versus exercise response LVH. to me, it's like saying that a common thread in all divorces is that the husband sometimes thought of other women. that's an easy out. i have a lot more to ask and learn about LVH. but long QT, no, i don't get the sense that this is a problem in our cohort. Dan Empfield aka Slowman

This swim was scary... I've never been nervous in the water my entire life... but the swim today was just different...

RIP to the family... such a sad thing.

Something about the conditions today (have you done the swim before)? Or just the swim in general? I've done it 3x and agree as a swim it can be stressful, including the jump. Just curious I the comment relates to the nature of the swim itself or something else going on

Ive done this race the past three years and i completely agree, something was different with this one. I recall swimming in valleys of water where to my left i saw six feet if seas and water from my right pounding me over my head. It was rough, rough seas out there. At one point i heard someone yelling "help me, help me" and I pray it was not this gentleman who died. That would be hard to take.

i don't think the temps were a lot colder. i think it's always cold. it's 55, pretty much, and i don't have any info that it was much if any colder. rougher, yes, but i don't know if that's typical for the season or not. Dan Empfield aka Slowman

Did the organizers inform participants of the approx. 4 knots ebb tide? My friends who swim The Bay daily said The Escape triathletes would have to swim on a 90-degree course away from the exit point on shore in order to compensate for the tide today. We thought only strong swimmers could get across close enough to shore for the exit unless the ferries dropped off triathletes short of the island.

sfbadger wrote:

Ive done this race the past three years and i completely agree, something was different with this one. I recall swimming in valleys of water where to my left i saw six feet if seas and water from my right pounding me over my head. It was rough, rough seas out there. At one point i heard someone yelling "help me, help me" and I pray it was not this gentleman who died. That would be hard to take.

[/quote Slowman]i don't think the temps were a lot colder. i think it's always cold. it's 55, pretty much, and i don't have any info that it was much if any colder. rougher, yes, but i don't know if that's typical for the season or not.[/quote]

This swim was scary... I've never been nervous in the water my entire life... but the swim today was just different...

RIP to the family... such a sad thing.

I did Alcatraz today. The water was really cold and very choppy. But I wouldn't consider it dangerous by any stretch. Well, any more dangerous than swimming the bay any other time. I feel for the victims family, and hope they can find out exactly what happened. They supposedly had 100 support kayaks out there. Why Do You Race? //FCA Endurance // Competitor's Creed // Twitter: @_NickWhite

I did the race today, I consider myself a strong swimmer and I put up a (imho) horrible time. This was my first time doing the race. I did not consider the temp to be an issue until getting out of the water, the issue was the wind blowing North, and the tide pulling hard out. The chop was really big and it really impared my normal stroke. Lot of missed breaths and drank a lot of water. Sighting was really confussing. I would not recommend this swim for a begginner and hope that the very well run race does a good job checking the qualifications of the participants. Even if you swim and race on a regular basis today was a whole other ball game. Just my opinion. I wish the best to the wife and family, cant imagine how difficult this is. RIP and God Bless.

I'm fairly certain I sat next to the gentleman during the boat ride to Alcatraz. He was a really nice guy, very fit looking and didn't seem overly worried about the swim. My heartfelt condolences to his family.

This is just so tragic. News like this is heartbreaking. So sorry for the family's loss. I'm from Austin and did this race rather unprepared last year. This news feels like a punch in the stomach. Rest in peace.

I did the race today, I consider myself a strong swimmer and I put up a (imho) horrible time. This was my first time doing the race. I did not consider the temp to be an issue until getting out of the water, the issue was the wind blowing North, and the tide pulling hard out. The chop was really big and it really impared my normal stroke. Lot of missed breaths and drank a lot of water. Sighting was really confussing. I would not recommend this swim for a begginner and hope that the very well run race does a good job checking the qualifications of the participants. Even if you swim and race on a regular basis today was a whole other ball game. Just my opinion. I wish the best to the wife and family, cant imagine how difficult this is. RIP and God Bless.

[/quote Slowman]i don't think the temps were a lot colder. i think it's always cold. it's 55, pretty much, and i don't have any info that it was much if any colder. rougher, yes, but i don't know if that's typical for the season or not.

Sea temp was 51F in the Aquatic Center yesterday.[/quote] Most years the temp for the race is 52-53 (when it was held later in the year), so it's a bit colder than normal (even a few degrees makes a big difference). The Bay doesn't change much during the year (I think the warmest I've ever seen it for a race was 58).